From Pedals to Propellers, Czech Flying Bike Takes Shape

Forget about sharing the road. A bunch of Czech engineers and hobbyists have proposed a flying bicycle that can float above the pavement thanks to a quartet of battery-powered propellers.

Using only off-the-shelf components, the Design Your Dreams team turned what had originally been an e-bike concept into a two-wheeled multicopter, which should be capable of vertical takeoffs and landings and up to five minutes of flight.

Thrust for liftoff comes from several horizontal propellers. In total, there’s 50 kW of electric motors on board, powering two main propellers and two stabilizers. Lithium-polymer batteries are stored on the bike’s lightweight frame, and the total setup weighs just 187 pounds. That’s a heck of a lot more than that carbon fiber Trek you were checking out at the local bike shop, but the Trek probably won’t fly.

The team is currently figuring out whether to source a flight control system from a hovercraft manufacturer or make their own. Their choice will come down to a cost/benefit analysis of whether it’s worth it to modify an existing system. The actual flight experience is said to be similar to that of a helicopter, but the landing might not be so smooth: Since gas-liquid dampers would be too heavy, the design relies on specially designed tires to reduce the shock of returning to earth.

A few more limitations: The maximum rider weight is also around 187 pounds. Pedaling around a bunch of propellers all day for a few months might help folks below that limit, but the whole setup is definitely too big for a bike lane.

The FBike team worked with software from Dassault Systemes to create animations of the concept. They kind of look like modern versions of the Terry Gilliam shorts that appeared between Monty Python sketches – except in the FBike simulations, the flying bike rider glides effortlessly over traffic instead of falling straight off a cliff.

The team says they still have a fair amount of work to do – creating 3-D models of wiring, getting a flight control system, finishing the frame construction and building a final mockup. The first test flights should take place as soon as August. Luckily for pedestrians below, the FBike’s creators have said that it’s just a marketing exercise that won’t ever make it to production.